The present invention relates to a card connector which has at least two card-accommodating slots, one of which accommodates a thin card such as an ISO standard IC card (also known as a xe2x80x9csmart cardxe2x80x9d) and another of which accommodates a thick card such as a PCMCIA standard IC card.
In recent years, the use of personal computers has grown rapidly as a result of progress made in computer technology. In particular, in the field of notebook personal computers, compact computers with high performance have been developed and computers equipped with card connectors which have two card-accommodating slots have also been developed. One card-accommodating slot accommodates an ISO standard IC card (hereinafter referred to as a xe2x80x9csmart cardxe2x80x9d) and the other card-accommodating slot accommodates a PCMCIA standard IC card (hereinafter referred to as an xe2x80x9cIC cardxe2x80x9d).
With respect to smart cards, as shown in FIGS. 6(A) and 6(B), a smart card 100 comprises a plurality of terminal parts 101 on one main surface of the card 100. With respect to the dimensions of the card 100, the card 100 typically has a depth of about 85.6 mm, a width of about 54 mm, and a thickness of from about 0.68 mm to about 0.84 mm.
With respect to IC cards, there are three types of IC cards, i.e., type I used as a semiconductor memory card, type II used as a modem card, and type III used as a hard disk card. FIG. 7 shows a type-I IC card 110 which comprises a connector 111 on one end portion of the card 110. With respect to the dimensions of the card 100, the depth is about 85.6 mm, the width is about 54 mm, and the thickness is about 3.3 mm. The type-II and type-III IC cards are not shown but, like the type-I IC card shown in FIG. 7, these cards have a depth of about 85.6 mm and a width of about 54 mm. The main difference between the type II and type-III IC cards in comparison to the type-I IC cards is that they have thickness of about 5 mm and about 10.5 mm, respectively.
When the dimensions of the smart cards 100 and the dimensions of the IC cards 110 are compared, it is noted that the depth and width are the same, and that only the thickness of the cards is different, with the smart cards 100 being thinner than the PCMCIA standard IC cards.
Since the smart cards 100 are thinner than the PCMCIA standard IC cards, the height of the card-accommodating slot that accommodates smart cards 100 in the above-mentioned prior art card connector is relatively small, while the height of the card-accommodating slot that accommodates IC cards is relatively large. As such, in normal use, smart cards are inserted into the card-accommodating slot that has a relatively small height, and IC cards are inserted into the card-accommodating slot that has a relatively large height.
In such prior art card connectors that accommodate two types of cards with different thicknesses, it is not possible to insert thick cards (IC cards) into the card-accommodating slots used for cards with a small height (the smart card card-accommodating slot). On the other hand, thin cards (smart cards) may be inserted into the card-accommodating slot used for cards with a large height (the IC card card-accommodating slot).
If a thin card is inserted into the card-accommodating slot used for cards with a large height, e.g., if a smart card 100 is inserted into the card-accommodating slot used for PCMCIA standard IC cards 110, there is a danger that the plurality of pin contacts corresponding to the card-accommodating slot used for IC cards 110, or a portion of the housing, etc., may be bent and damaged by the end portion of the smart card 100. Furthermore, if a smart card 100 is inserted into the above-mentioned card-accommodating slot, even if the pin contacts are not damaged, the end user may mistakenly believe that the above-mentioned smart card 100 has been inserted into the appropriate card-accommodating slot, and the notebook personal computer will not operate normally when the power supply is switched on.
To prevent the insertion of thin smart cards into card-accommodating slots designed for thicker IC cards, several devices have been developed.
For example, FIGS. 8(A) and 8(B) show an IC card socket which prevents the insertion of thin cards into a card-accommodating slot used for thicker IC cards (for additional details of this socket, reference is made to Japanese Patent Application Kokai No. H11-39435).
As shown in FIGS. 8(A) and 8(B), the IC card socket 200 comprises a plurality of pin contacts 201 electrically connected with the IC card 100 when the IC cards is inserted into the socket 200, and a pair of guide rails 202 that guide the insertion of the IC card 100 into engagement with the pin contacts 201. A set of upper and lower thickness detection levers 203 are arranged on one of the guide rails 202 and are supported by a pivoting shaft 206 so that the levers 203 can pivot. Clamping parts 205 are arranged on the end portions of the detection levers 203 on the side of the card insertion opening and detect the thickness of inserted objects that are inserted into the guide rails 202. Shutter parts 204 are arranged on the end portions of the thickness detection levers 203 on the side of the pin contacts.
When a thick IC card 110 is inserted into the IC card socket 200 along the guide rails 202, the clamping parts 205 open, and the upper and lower thickness detection levers 203 open about the pivoting shaft 206 as shown in FIG. 8(A). Furthermore, at the same time that the thickness detection levers 203 open, the shutter parts 204 open, and the IC card 110 can be connected to the pin contacts 201.
On the other hand, when a thin smart card 100 is inserted along the guide rails 202, since the thickness of the smart card 100 is smaller than the thickness of the IC card 110, the upper and lower detection levers 203 do not open, as shown in FIG. 8(B). Accordingly, the shutter parts 204 remain closed so that the insertion of the smart card 100 is prevented by the shutter parts 204.
There are several problems with the IC card socket 200 shown in FIGS. 8(A) and 8(B). For example, although the IC card socket 200 is usually effective when there is one card-accommodating slot that accommodates IC cards, it cannot be used in card connectors in which at least two card-accommodating slots are arranged adjacent one another in a vertical configuration, one card-accommodating slot being designed to accommodate a thin card and the other being designed to accommodate a thick card. Furthermore, the mechanism that prevents the insertion of thin cards is complicated, the manufacturing cost of the IC card socket 200 is high and the socket is bulky.
Another device for preventing insertion of thin smart cards into card-accommodating slots designed for thicker IC cards is shown in FIGS. 9(A) and 9(B) and is known as an IC cartridge reader. The IC cartridge reader has a mechanism for preventing the erroneous insertion of inappropriate IC cartridges and is more fully described in Japanese Patent Application Kokai No. H2-35584.
As shown in FIGS. 9(A) and 9(B), the IC cartridge reader 300 comprises a chassis 301 defining an IC cartridge insertion opening 302. A shutter mechanism 303 is arranged inside the chassis 301 in the vicinity of the IC cartridge insertion opening 302. The shutter mechanism 303 includes a shutter main body 304 and a spring member 305 which supports the shutter main body 304 so that the shutter main body 304 can open and close. An erroneous-insertion preventing projection 306 is formed on the shutter main body 304, and a cut-out 311 is formed in the end portion of the IC cartridge 310 in a position corresponding to the erroneous insertion preventing projection 306.
As shown in FIG. 9(A), when an appropriate IC cartridge 310 is inserted in the normal manner into the IC cartridge insertion opening 302, the erroneous-insertion preventing projection 306 is inserted into the interior of the cut-out 311 so that the tip end of the IC cartridge 310 contacts the shutter main body 304. Since an inclined surface 304a is formed on the shutter main body 304, a downward-oriented component force of the insertion force of the IC cartridge 310 is generated by the inclined surface 304a so that the shutter main body 304 is driven downward against the elasticity of the spring member 305. As a result, the IC cartridge 310 can be inserted.
On the other hand, when an inappropriate IC cartridge, e.g., an IC cartridge 310 that does not have a cut-out 311, or an IC cartridge 310 in which the position of the cut-out 311 is different, is inserted into the IC cartridge insertion opening 302, the tip end of the IC cartridge 310 contacts the erroneous-insertion preventing projection 306 as shown in FIG. 9(B). Since the erroneous insertion preventing projection 306 is formed perpendicular to the direction of insertion of the IC cartridge 310, a downward-oriented component force is not generated in the shutter main body 304 so that the shutter main body 304 is not opened. As a result, the insertion of the inappropriate IC cartridge 310 is prevented.
One disadvantage of the IC cartridge reader 300 shown in FIGS. 9(A) and 9(B) is that the IC cartridge 310 for use in the IC cartridge reader 300 must be a unique cartridge having a cutout 311 formed in the end portion. As such, the cartridge reader 300 cannot be used with general all-purpose cards.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a card connector which has at least two card-accommodating slots, one designed to accommodate a thin card and the other designed to accommodate a thick card, wherein the card connector has a simple construction and is not bulky, and wherein the insertion of thin cards into the interior of the card-accommodating slot that accommodates a thick card can be prevented.
In order to achieve this object and others, a card connector in accordance with the present invention includes at least two card-accommodating slots, one designed to accommodate thin cards and another designed to accommodate thick cards, and a thin card insertion-preventing device which has a cam surface for the thick cards and a groove that can accommodate the thin cards. The thin card insertion-preventing device is pivotally supported on a shaft so that the insertion-preventing device can pivot on a card guiding arm defining the card-accommodating slot that accommodates the thick cards.
In one embodiment, an inclined guide surface is arranged on the groove to guide the accommodation of the thin cards.